


part pepper, part licorice, part rot

by silenceinmolasses



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Best Friends, Body Horror, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Gore, Holidays, Horror, Inspired by Poppy Z. Brite, Kissing, M/M, Mystery, Song Lyrics, Suspense, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings, Unresolved Sexual Tension, dream gore, supernatural elements or maybe not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-04
Updated: 2017-08-04
Packaged: 2018-12-11 01:29:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11703966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silenceinmolasses/pseuds/silenceinmolasses
Summary: This is a story about friendship.





	part pepper, part licorice, part rot

**Author's Note:**

> The title is from Poppy Z. Brite's (now Billy Martin's) _His Mouth Will Taste Of Wormwood_.
> 
> Please enjoy.

The air was wet with heat and strongly smelled of sea salt. Josh coughed involuntarily as he stepped out of the stuffy bus, his head mildly pulsating with a lack of sleep and his headphones askew on his neck. Tyler inhaled sharply near him from surprise from the sudden change of air. The last time the bus stopped was hours ago to pick up a few girls – their hair full of flowers – whose bags smelled of concentrated _greenness_ of summer forests. One of the newcomers accidentally hit Josh with a fishing rod, waking him up in the process, and making Tyler giggle.

Now the sun was scorching and the gray asphalt burned Josh’s feet through his tennis shoes and when Tyler brushed his fingers across the ukulele’s strings – a gentle and simply movement – the harsh sound like a concrete object stayed in between them, collecting dust.

‘This was a bad idea.’

‘Doesn’t look very promising.’

They both stopped. Tyler looked at Josh in a supplicating manner, lips quirking.

‘I think the map is at the bottom of my bag,’ he brushed the strings again.

‘I think the house won’t be too hard to find,’ Josh nodded to the path crossing the main road they arrived by. Tyler came closer and put his chin on his shoulder.

‘ _Heat, heat around us…_ ’ he improvised, ‘ _Heat like sun settling in our brains and now we’re lost with the map an inch from our hands…_ ’

‘Let’s just… find the place. I could kill for a shower,’ Josh clapped Tyler on his back and took the rucksack from his hands, pulling it up next to his own bag. 

The trees tried to provide a slight shade for the guys as they stepped into the steep path: it colored their view in grays and golds. There seemed no cars around for miles or any human life for that matter. To Josh, too used for the man-made sounds of a TV in the other room and his own fingers beating on any surface available, it was way too silent. He realized he could hear his thoughts more clearly as they seemed to lazily seep out of his ears softly and warmly like molasses. There was shuffling of feet and Tyler’s hot hand smacked his neck.

‘A mosquito,’ he blinked amicably. Josh looked at him, too slow to react, to say thanks or sure and hit him back, slide his fingers into his clavicle, pooling with sweat.

‘I forgot how loud nature is,’ Tyler said conversationally.

‘Huh?’ Josh woke up from his daydreams of lying on soft grass and never getting up. Tyler stood still, his eyes shining excitedly through the slight redness of fatigue. Josh felt himself smile.

Yes, Josh could hear it now. It sounded almost like sighing, the leaves brushing against each other and wind kissing them affectionally. There was chirping of bugs, sharp noises, full of color. The path went sharply ahead and each minute they were walking all the sounds mixed and broke and replaced each other. It was comforting, almost. There were flowers around, though there were so small Josh could not see them. They smelled of heated honey; they left tingling at the back of his throat and left him wanting something more. There really were on a holiday right now.

‘ _Together with my best friend we walk in a garden of delights_ ,’ Tyler half sang, half murmured, ‘ _our lips are roses and as I take his hand our fingers mingle like springs…_ ’ he exhaled.

‘It’s too hot to hold hands,’ Josh lazily hummed. Tyler’s deodorant, though almost always barely noticeable, a tang of sandalwood, now, together with the invisible flowers, colored Josh’s cheeks and mouth in reds.

Tyler laughed and head-butted him softly. 

‘I was so looking forward to cuddling with you during the nights,’ he winked. Warm, familiar arms wrapped around Josh’s shoulders for a moment. Tyler’s lips were close and wet, the way a lover’s would be.

They continued walking in silence for a moment. Their steps on a hard and dusty ground melted into the cacophonous nature sounds; they could have been walking here all their lives. It must have been at least half an hour.

‘Do you think we’re lost yet?’ Tyler politely asked.

‘Well, the cottage should be a few miles away from the road,’ Josh followed a ruby red butterfly past him with his eyes. He felt a bit feverish, the flickering of sun and shadows a kaleidoscope in his head.

‘Yeah,’ Tyler seemed thoughtful. And then:

‘Let’s take a break,’ Tyler took his rucksack off his best friend’s shoulder and let it fall to the ground.

‘The faster we reach it, the faster we could rest already,’ Josh bent down and breathed deeply. The horizon of colors began to dissipate. 

‘You look like you’re gonna faint,’ Tyler stopped him from standing up. He was all tired and sweaty too, eyes shining with reflected sun and worry. As he stooped down, there was something else hiding behind the furrowed brow.

‘I think I heard someone walking behind us,’ Tyler said casually. Josh opened his eyes. 

‘Another unlucky bastard,’ he muttered, also quietly. 

‘Yeah,’ Tyler started rummaging around their food bag, ‘and then the steps disappeared.’

‘Must have been a ghost. No, a nymph,’ Josh closed his eyes again. He tried to catch any unexpected noise. There were none.

‘And then they appeared in front of us,’ Tyler opened a bottled water and took a sip.

‘Figures. We’re really slow,’ Josh spilled some blessedly cold water on his hand and wiped his face.

‘Sounds really creepy, doesn’t it?’ Tyler happily announced. Their eye met and the guys cracked up, ‘maybe it was a deer?’ he continued and looked around. The same never-ending path, the same trees whispering to themselves. The same them, sitting so close their breaths mingled. Josh longed to hold Tyler’s hand.

‘Let’s continue?’ Josh offered. Tyler nodded. Josh was feeling slightly more refreshed, though his heart was still protesting against the air each time he inhaled. After one hundred steps he wondered aloud:  
‘Wasn’t there supposed to be crossroads somewhere?’ 

A beat of silence.

‘Nope,’ Tyler’s voice was a bit strained. Through the heat, Josh could still hear the playful notes of laughter.

‘Then…’ Josh started but Tyler interrupted him with a smile and a gesture to the side.

‘We’re here,’ he sounded extremely proud.

The cottage was small and pleasant, well-kept flower beds adorning the entrance. Bags thumped on the grass.

‘Neat,’ Josh commented and came closer to their home for their five-days holiday. The trees were taller here, more varied and thus the path was soft with wild carnelian cherry petals and old thorns. One side of the house was covered in kudzu: small green leaves grew uncontrollably, winding up the boards until they completely covered the window. Josh could barely see the light yellow color of the walls. It looked excruciatingly beautiful.

Behind the house was one more path, sprinkled with sand. If Josh remembered correctly, an hour’s walk away from was a small town. The lease here was quite cheap and even though the distances were not that small, Josh felt that they made a fantastic bargain. Josh heard Tyler unlocking the door. He entered behind him, following the small hall leading to the kitchen full of sunlight. It was clean and the furniture was maybe a bit old but the sharp colors of the tablecloth screamed that the original owner is their age. 

‘Neat,’ Josh said again. He could see another door of darker wood near the wardrobe.

‘Yeah,’ Tyler hummed, ‘I thought we would catch the landlord. You know, show our faces.’

‘I guess passport copies were enough,’ he shrugged. After picking up their things and throwing them on the king-sized bed and suppressing the desire to throw themselves on it and sleep half of their holiday away, they first checked the circuit board which worked impeccably and then the Wi-Fi connection.

‘Huh,’ Tyler lifted his phone up, ‘I guess the Internet works, only there is no connection.’

‘Schrödinger’s Internet,’ Josh answered, cutting the tomato for salads. It smelled bright and sweet, juice staining his fingers. After throwing a small handful of salt in the bowl, he opened the nearest cupboard only to find no oil. Right, he was not at their shared flat where all the surfaces were covered in spices like red sugar.

‘Hey, where’s the oil? I can’t find it.’

‘Oh my, already? Make me dinner first,’ Tyler giggled behind him. A lean tanned hand opened a drawer near the small fridge and took out the bottle of golden lazily moving liquid. 

‘Why are we even here if not now?’ it sounded clumsy but Tyler laughed anyway.

The guys had small dinner on the grass near the flower beds. Bees were buzzing near them and the sun in an endlessly blue sky made it hard to understand what time it was. Though it was still hot, sweat dripping into their eyes, they could not imagine eating inside.

‘By the way,’ Tyler took a bite out of his chicken nugget, leaving a speck of chili sauce under his bottom lip, ‘let’s visit the town tomorrow morning. I want to check out the music shop.’

‘Or maybe we can not go into sweltering heat the first thing tomorrow,’ Josh munched on the salads, crispy cucumbers they bought in the market while waiting for the bus making him wish for their own vegetable patches.

‘It won’t be that bad in the morning,’ Tyler argued with no real passion. He yawned and slumped forward, his head heavy on Josh’s thigh and his hair tickling the spots where jeans had holes. There were a lot of them. Josh lifted his hand to caress Tyler’s head but the latter’s eyes were too bright so he lowered it again, almost sticking his fingers in leftover lukewarm fries.

They went to sleep after fighting who would get to shower first and then Tyler crashed first, occupying half of Josh’s space on the bed, his breathing shallow as the room was hot but his shoulder still touched Josh. Josh felt like he couldn’t really sleep, the room dark and light at the same time, as if the sunlight could not disappear even after everything around was dark.

The first night Josh did not remember what he dreamt about.

*

The room had a slightly white tinge to it when Josh opened his eyes. He blinked, carefully sitting up, letting Tyler’s slack warm hand fall on the bed. Josh felt well-rested, though he expected pain in his muscles or stinging of sunburn on his neck. He slowly creeped out of bed, debating what he could make for breakfast. Tyler might want something sweet and they have a bottle of honey. Once they went to the town, there would be a market with fresh produce, so Josh now could use up a few handfuls of raspberries he picked up yesterday while waiting for Tyler to finish taking pictures of a lone rose bush. During the strongest summer heats Josh would feel on the brink of having allergic pollen reactions, as if plants with their blackened leaves would scorch his nostrils and burn his throat. He would curl up into himself, matching his breathing to Tyler’s and then slowing it down, until his heartbeat was too sluggish to use it as a metronome for beating drums. This trip was a deliberate and a well-thought escapade where they would finally have some time for themselves, to be themselves, Josh supposed, though it was too clichéd and not accurate at all. This trip was a sudden and fun decision where two best friends could forget all the trouble about jobs and paying for getting to practice their music and other things and just hang out together. Josh looked behind him as Tyler shifted, still deeply asleep and still leaving the space for Josh to come back to bed. Josh could feel himself unfurling somewhere deep inside.

The kitchen smelled of flowers: last night Tyler cut a few blossoms and put them in a single champagne glass they found in a cupboard. Josh couldn’t remember the name of these tiny yellow flowers peacefully swimming in water. Though the curtains were closed, he could imagine the way they would burn and how much the crystal would bite their eyes once the sun touched it. How did Tyler sing yesterday: _my best friend and I are walking in a garden of delights_? 

As Josh turned on the hotplate, his fingers sticky with honey and dough, he heard steps behind him. Seeing Josh smiling behind him, his hair messy and a T-shirt too big made Josh grin and remember he forgot to put some trousers on.

‘Are those pancakes?’ he came closer, theatrically smelling the air.

‘Yup,’ Josh swatted Tyler’s hand away from the bowl and bit an apple that was thrusted in his face.  
‘That’s my buddy.’

Only when they sat at the table, instant coffee hot and pancakes sweet, Tyler nonchalantly mentioned a thing that threw it all in motion.

‘By the way,’ he smiled – a flash of teeth – similar to when he can’t wait to say something that would surprise Josh, ‘I think we will have to change our plans for today.’

‘Why?’ Josh squinted. Tyler’s smile grew, ‘how hot it is?’

‘Oh, no,’ Tyler took a sip and winked.

‘Why are you like this?’ Josh deadpanned and stood up to move away the curtain. He was ready to whine to Tyler for having to stand up but then he was met with a wall of milk. The fog was so thick Josh could not see a thing; he could only assume that the brightness was due to the sun shining somewhere high above.

‘Holy shit,’ he whispered. After he lifted his hand to open the window, Tyler stopped him.

‘Better not,’ his fingers wrapped around Josh’s wrist, ‘I opened it in our bedroom and, uh, it’s still there.’

Josh stared at him almost openmouthed.

‘Well, the sea is pretty close,’ _not that close, though,_ ‘and it’s still morning,’ _is it?_

Tyler shrugged. In the light of this overwhelming milky whiteness he looked ethereal. 

Josh continued to stare at him.

‘I think I know what we can do today,’ later Josh slowly said, watching Tyler playing the same tune they heard from cartoon shows hundreds of times before.

‘Yeah?’ Tyler lifted his head. Josh smiled.

‘Come on.’

They left the bedroom. The house that just this morning seemed welcoming and warm now was awashed in unfamiliar light. The guys opened all the curtains they had closed the night before to hide from the heat. The whiteness seemed already familiar and so deep Josh thought he could see them in it. It felt so wet Josh kept licking his upper lip to get rid of excess water.

Josh looked around, searching for something all over the walls and ceiling. The wallpaper was light blue, cozy, and the wardrobe’s door was half open. The windows shone white.

‘You know, there’s a wall outside covered in vines,’ Josh tried to pinpoint the direction.

‘Yup, we should totally grow that,’ Tyler tried to follow Josh’s gaze, ‘what about it?’

Josh smiled so wide his eyes crinkled.

‘Where’s the window of that wall? That’s covered in kudzu?’

Tyler’s eyes widened and he laughed, hugging Josh across his shoulders, now excited, eyes frantically searching the two visible windows.

‘You’re right! We should find it,’ he looked around. Searching for the mystery was easy in the beginning but then it made them feel like idiots. It’s one floor cottage, four walls, how hard can it be to find one measly window? 

‘Maybe there’s a double wall somewhere,’ Tyler offered, standing in the doorway of the bedroom. His blush of excitement was already weening. Josh remembered his pale fatigue before leaving for the trip, eyes dull, and pushed further.

‘That’s too boring,’ Josh stated and turned around again. From the angle he was standing in he could see the side of the kitchen table and the closed entrance door. One window mocked him with its whiteness.

‘We need some fitting music,’ Tyler said after a pause. Josh continued to lean against the wall that, by all logic, was supposed to have a covered window in it. He drummed against it and his hand slipped. Josh stooped and knocked a few times on that place. It was hollow, just like he expected.

‘Did you find a secret room?’ Tyler asked above him and then he sang out, brushing the ukulele’s strings, ‘ _show me the room in your heart, invite me there to stay for tea._ ’

‘I think I kinda did,’ Josh whispered back. The wallpaper was slightly darker here; as the wardrobe threw a shade over that place, it was not obvious from the first glance. Josh, before dropping everything as they certainly were not going to start ripping wallpapers chasing whimsical ideas, felt adrenaline slapping him as the darker papery material was not a wallpaper at all but carton blocks, fixed to the wall only by the corners. It was a passable extra wall to hide any thing or room that was not needed at the moment but still quite useful in general. 

‘Can we remove them?’ Tyler whispered behind him.

‘I think so. We can check and then put them back,’ Josh looked at him and shrugged. They suddenly felt awkward, stooping against a fake wall in a rented cottage, lighted only by silver wisps of fog.

Tyler was the first to crack, his curiosity lifting his arms and carefully peeling off the angle of the paper. It resisted for a few seconds and then quivered as Josh unglued the bottom part.

They were met with a void. The empty doorway was the same size as others in the house; it might have been a second bedroom or something, Josh supposed. The light from the hallway was not enough to illuminate the space and they already knew that the window was hidden beneath the vines. It smelt dusty and unused for a long time.

‘It’s probably a storage,’ Tyler remarked, slowly creeping inside.

Well, that was too boring.

Josh stepped after Tyler, his hand searching for the light switch when Tyler disappeared in the darkness. It was silent, unsettlingly so. Behind him, the carton block, not being held by anyone, closed in on them.

‘Tyler? Did you find the light?’ Josh’s voice shattered itself against the walls. As for a possible storage, the chamber felt vast and infinite.

‘No,’ Tyler answered somewhere miles away, both below and above. But the bright notes in his voice were intact so Josh willed his heart to calm down and took a step closer. The darkness seemed to have the same thick consistence as the fog outside; it was like the world got turned inside out.

‘Did you find anything?’ he asked again. He started to really dislike how his voice was drunk immediately by the room and his skin felt itchy with uneasiness. It was, of course, nothing but dust which was disturbed by them and moved to fly around.

‘No,’ Tyler repeated, his voice strained uncomfortably but when Josh was opening his mouth to suggest leaving this room already, his best friend screamed harshly, ‘NO, please no, don’t!’ he choked on a sob.

Josh ran towards the sound, adrenaline and fear spicy and washing off the dust. He tripped on something small, hear the glass shattering beneath and then he collided with a warm familiar body on the ground.

_No._

Tyler was crying, his whole body shivering on the floor.

‘Tyler, Tyler,’ Josh brought him closer to himself by his shoulders, felt tears on his trembling fingers, ‘Tyler, are you hurt, Tyler,’ his thoughts were in a complete disarray where the only extractable idea was a name that must the put somewhere deep safely. Tyler was sobbing too hard to speak. His clammy hands, cold with terror, gripped Josh’s biceps, bringing him closer for a painful imitation of a hug. Josh leant closer, his knees digging into the hard floor on either side of a vulnerable Tyler’s body, arms circling around his trashing torso. He was on the verge of a panic attack, Josh realized, clumsily brushing sweaty hair off his forehead and repeating his name like a mantra, first urgently then softer.

Tyler’s breath was slowing with each passing minute until he dropped his head back; the sigh that escaped his mouth was heavy, languid and it burned Josh’s forehead as he gripped the body tighter and pressed a few messy kisses all over the neck in front of him. Adrenaline was still slamming his heart into his ribcage and he scraped his teeth across Josh’s pulse erratic and oh so sweet on his tongue. Now the sound Tyler let out was unmistakably a moan, warm and sticky and his body was slowly relaxing in Josh’s hold. He was still crying, Josh could feel the heavy tears sliding in between his fingers where he embraced Tyler’s face. When Josh could discern Tyler saying his name, he lifted his upper body and their lips met. Josh nibbled upon Tyler’s lips, his tongue slipping inside. Tyler kissed him back, desperately seeking comfort, plunging his tongue on Josh’s tongue like a person barging in a place he thought he had lost forever. Josh thought he could feel something hard digging into his inner thigh but he swiped that thought away. His lungs filled with fire, exhaled desire, making him helplessly warm, happy with the knowledge that Tyler was okay. He was okay and not hurt and probably still a bit but still intact and now he was clumsily sucking on his tongue.

Oh.

Later when they left the room – it was a storage after all, Josh accidentally broke a an electric bulb – they left it to be aired for a few hours, the guys spent the rest of the day acting especially polite with each other, all _would you like some more tea_ or _does your phone have reception?_. Josh expected the fog to be have gone by the time they left the room like in some shitty story book as they have already played their parts but the mist was still there, though the sun was already burning through it like a wet paper.

After they went back to sleep, hoping that tomorrow will be a better day, counting hopes like sheep, hoping to open their eyes to a room which was not full of tension. Tyler again fell asleep first, his face slightly relaxing, though he was clearly trying to leave more space for Josh to sleep than yesterday. It was dark, Josh body was pulsating like an open heart and he kept his eyes closed, waiting for the feel of a fervent best friend below him to disappear. Whenever he was sure he was snoozing, he would wake up again, words like swollenness of allergy making him hard to breath. Tomorrow, he thought, they could talk tomorrow after Tyler got his sleep, after they both looked at the house as a house, as a house, as a house and nothing else.  


Josh’s dream on the second night was uncomfortable, almost physically restricting, and bright with overwhelmingness of it all. The colors glued to his dream-body, stretching tight across his skin, smoothing down his sides like hands. Fingers pressed into his dream-flesh, wrapping around his bones and Josh in his dream-mind wondered how invasive it felt as opposed to actually scary. Fingers grabbed at his dream-skin like trying to rip of the dye that was beginning to itch and then the uncomfortable relief when the skin separated from his dream-muscles, drowning his eyes in a kaleidoscope of reds. His dream didn’t hurt as the fingers slotted themselves in between his ribs and his own fingers, pushing out the meat away in a mockery of physical affection. It felt good, Josh’s dream-heart hurried up at arms enveloping his torso, wet with blood, and fingers pulling at his hair and sliding his scalp down. Transparent fluid was dripping into his mouth, followed by fingers slick with their own blood. Dream-Josh opened his mouth for them, the insides overcome by the fullness of taste he imagined tissue might taste like only it was completely empty and tasteless, his mouth full of mass that greatly tasted of nothing. Blood stained his eyes, dark drops like ants crawled into his tear ducks, squirming behind his eye balls and it tickled in a dreadfully comfortless manner. Dream-Josh tried to close his eyes but the black dripping fingers followed, exposed bones grazing against the eye sockets, wetly sliding into his skull. Repetitive scraping as they tried to find the maggots moving into dream-Josh’s brain – fingers moving in and out sounded obscene – and it felt like some unnecessary parody of fucking. Dream-Josh waited patiently as chunks of his brain slid down his half eaten neck, erasing half of his view in the process. Hands grabbed his slick eye balls from behind. Dream-Josh felt mild curiosity as he went completely blind. The darkness had the image of Tyler, his mouth open in a moan, and Josh realized he was not sleeping anymore. He was not hard, _thank all the gods_ , and as he opened his eyes with distrust for himself he was met with Tyler’s naked back as he was rummaging through the drawers.

*

As the day broke fogless and the wind had picked up, smelling sweet and only slightly hot, the guys found themselves wandering around the town. It was somewhat smaller than expected but Josh was not going to start judging how space was supposed to function. What he wanted more than anything in the world, Josh thought to himself, rummaging through the T-shirt racks in the street vendor as Tyler was trying sunglasses inside, was to ask him what happened. No more giving him space and watching the shadows beneath his eyes grow darker and his voice quieter. Each hour skinned them alive.

The esplanade was full with shop vendors and cafes, making Josh’s objective easier. The bricks beneath their feet were colored in soft greens and yellows, caressing their eyes as the path was almost always in a shade due to the slender rowans growing periodically. It was a great infrastructure and Josh steered Tyler to the ice-cream shop hid behind a packed poster board. Tyler went with no objections, his fists clenched around a bag full of fresh vegetables. After ordering a couple of milkshakes, they sat at the remotest table. Tyler had a tiny smile on his face, one that was a bit bashful; his heart was ready to fall out of his sleeve.

‘I… should apologize for making you worry,’ Tyler mused aloud.

‘No, you don’t owe me anything,’ Josh answered. Once he lifted his eyes from his drink, his breath caught in his throat at how open Tyler’s face was.

‘I’m sorry,’ he murmured, ‘I should have gone differently in this situation.’

Josh kept his face serene but his resolve was ripping apart at the seams like a pomegranate that has fallen on the floor.

‘What happened?’ Josh carved in himself an open space for Tyler’s fears and pain to fill it up.

‘I…’ Tyler brushed his hand across his face like it hurt and he was sick of the ache, ‘there was a trick of light. Or, well, I might have seen a hallucination. But, ah, I don’t think so.’

‘What did you see?’ Josh was an unmovable pillar.

‘There was a mirror in the room. So, well, there was some light from the window and I didn’t see myself,’ he was struggling with words the way he never suffered while singing. The words were tying him up, digging into his wrists, his ankles and his mouth, ‘there were you and you were injured, there was blood everywhere,’ Tyler clenched his fists but when Josh put his hands on top, he relaxed, ‘I don’t know how it’s possible.’

‘Doesn’t matter, it’s over,’ Josh sounded angrier than he meant to, ‘we’re both safe and nothing’s bad going to happen,’ _it was just a bad dream_ , he almost added.

Josh thought about giving him more kisses but then changed his mind.

‘I know,’ Tyler brushed across his eyes, ‘I’m being stupid.’

Josh shook his head and when Tyler squeezed his hands, he smiled back.

The way back was calmer. Though the sun again was scorching their backs, the path was riddled with young spruces which, when not providing any respite, at least smelled green and the soft thorns tickled their hands. The cottage was an awaited sight, though not that much welcoming. There was nothing strange about it, a typical cottage in a remote location put for rent maybe cheaper than expected. If there were any reception in the area Josh would make a call and leave some feedback for their mysterious landlord.

‘Mind if I go take a shower?’ Josh called out from their bedroom, rummaging through the drawers.

‘Is that a hint for something?’ Tyler answered from the kitchen. The sound of running water stopped for a moment. Josh smiled to himself.

‘Maybe later,’ he said maybe a bit too quietly, not really caring about continuing the quips.

The bathroom tiles were wonderfully cold and Josh felt the water clean him both physically and emotionally. He scratched his stubbly chin, remembered that he’s on holiday and made a pleasing decision not to shave. His view was obstructed by the towel on his head and surrounded with wet blue material he let himself drink in the image of a few redder spots on Tyler’s neck which he did not try to hide. Of course, it was not surprising and yet the trust Tyler displayed in such a vulnerable moment spread in Josh’s chest. Without thinking he threw the towel on the rack, meeting his gaze in the slightly steamed mirror. Only he was met with Tyler’s eyes and Tyler’s face. Josh did not blink or pinch himself to see if he was sleeping; he was quite collected and calmly looked as a familiar form of his best friend split in half. A dark blood welled in the cut going down his face and chest where Josh could see movement as skinned fingers appeared from inside, waving in a grotesque parody of an invitation.  
Josh stared back and he screamed with rage.

‘Josh?!’ Tyler banged on the bathroom door, his concern seeping through the cracks.

‘I’m okay, I just slipped. Sorry,’ Josh answered, glancing behind him and when he looked back to the mirror, he only saw himself, hair wet and skin pale. The glass was steamed and Josh wiped it off with his hand. It was him all right, looking resigned, heart beating with questions.

‘Are you hurt?’ Tyler’s voice still sounded panicked.

‘No. Wanna come in and check?’ Josh pressed his forehead against the door, relieved to hear his best friend laughing.

‘What a bad timing, I have a pot boiling,’ Tyler stood behind the door for a moment, before going back to the kitchen. Josh looked at the mirror again. The view was stills steamed, full with drops, his reflection was blotchy and dark, not clear at all what it showed.

When he finally left the bathroom, his clothes clean but limbs heavy, it started to rain. Firstly there were a few heavy, quick drops and then it hissed quietly as water trickled down the kitchen window. The rain sheet was translucent with accumulated sunlight. As Josh sat at the table, a bowl of spaghetti in his hands, smelling sour sweet with homemade tomato sauce, Tyler was melancholically looking through the window.

‘There go my sunbathing plans,’ he remarked, taking a sip of his water.

‘It should stop soon,’ Josh shrugged, ‘we would check if the reception existed here.’

‘Yeah… I forgot where I put my phone.’

They ate in silence for a while, rain drops hitting the roof. They were more felt, than heard; the temperature inside was noticeably lower. The air smelt of exhaustion, it glued to Josh’s skin, making it itch somewhere deep inside.

After dinner they moved to the bedroom with a silent agreement. They sat on the bed, side by side, lights on in their nearest premises, doors closed. Tyler took out his notes with lyrics, colorful scribbles smoothed the worry lines around Josh’s eyes. He indifferently played with his phone, his ear sometimes tickled by Tyler’s hair. He lifted his eyes from the screen, trying to stretch in a way that wouldn’t disturb Tyler’s writings when he noticed two shadows, visible through the crack between the door and the floor. They were slim, standing a part the way a person’s feet would. Josh looked for a few minutes; they didn’t move. He kept trying to remember what thing in the hallway would throw this kind of specific shadow. 

‘What’s wrong?’ Tyler asked quietly and rubbed his tensed shoulder.

‘Nothing,’ Josh answered. He looked down. The shadows were probably coming from a chair or something. 

‘Okay…’ Tyler muttered, his hand not leaving Josh’s arm who, in his turn, softly head-butted Tyler’s shoulder. He stayed like that, breathing in their shared space. They smelled soft and warm like cacao butter shower gel they both used and there was something underneath too. Tyler wrapped his arms around him, notes sliding off his knees on the bed.

The dream on the third night started and finished early. He just had a big emphatic realization that he was dreaming as all the colors of the room where all wrong. They were shining wetly, the walls light green but scorching red at the same time as if red liquid was leaking in a thin trickle all over the place. The bed was too soft, Tyler’s lyric notes shifted and mixed like ants and there was a hand in his pants, sliding wetly on his deck. Dream-Josh tried to desperately crawl away but more hands pressed him flat on the sheets. In the sluggish light of reds and purples Josh was held down by a form of Tyler whose eyes were red with blood and a hole in his chest was full of squirming rotten arms. Josh struggled but the arms cut down on his air flow, lifting his shirt and digging wet bony hot fingers into his stomach. The hand in between his hands kept moving slowly and confidently; everything reeked of blood and Josh with a sickeningly painless clarity felt his skin and flesh dissolving, tearing apart with no sound at all. The body above him lowered its face, lips completely overcome by rot; it opened what was left of its mouth and bloody maggots trickled onto Josh’s face, squirming all over his cheeks and neck. He started crying, the tears scalding, feeding the maggots, and then he woke up, drenched in sweat.

Josh breathed erratically. His hand was unconsciously clenching the notes on the bed. It was dark, probably a middle of the night, and his heart beat painfully in his throat. Josh sat up, staring at the darkness, taking comfort from a lack of any movement.

Where was Tyler?

The other side of the bed was empty and cold. All was silent, no steps of him coming back from the bathroom or the kitchen or whatever. Josh’s heart picked up again, the dream firmly lodged in his brain of heavily injured Tyler’s body. He left the bed, tripping on the blankets on his way out, all but hitting the light switch.

‘Tyler?’ Josh called out to the dim hallway, ‘Tyler!’ he repeated louder. The kitchen and the bathroom seemed deserted so he turned to the door leading outside. They should have left after Tyler’s break down in the storage room. Whatever it was: haunted house or a trick or light, they should have left for home days ago. 

‘TYLER!’ Josh hollered again, his voice in an empty house sounding almost hysterical. He stopped right before opening the door and sprinted back to the wall where the unused room lay behind the cartons. They were barely holding themselves up, Josh threw them to the side and ran into the storage. The light from the hallway could not reach all the corners but he could clearly see a figure lying near the open window with the wind blowing kudzu leaves inside. Josh slid closer, grabbing Tyler by his shoulders, his heart stopping for a moment as his fingers touch something wet. It was only the rain water from yesterday, Tyler was sleeping soundly, the vines crowning him.

‘Tyler,’ Josh insistently whispered, tearing the plant away. The mirror loomed big above them; Josh paid it no mind. Tyler opened his eyes, confusion widening his gaze.

‘Huh? Joshie? Was I… sleepwalking?’ Josh helped him to stand up.

‘Yeah, I guess,’ he took Tyler’s hand and lead him out to the bedroom, quickly hiding the room behind blocks.

‘We… we should leave. Let’s spend the night somewhere else,’ he turned to the wardrobe to get the bags but Tyler stopped him.

‘Josh, it’s night. Wherever we go, we might get lost,’ he squeezed his hand. The area around Tyler’s eyes was red with fatigue.

‘Yeah, you’re right,’ Josh’s fury like frost was freezing his insides, settling against the insides of his ribs. Thus they waited until they saw the first break of sour orange dawn through the window. It was open and the wet wind brought mosquitos but the guys did not want to be fooled again. They sat back to back, snoozing patiently, not really sleeping therefore both of them were well and full. Tyler once stood up for a glass of water; Josh made sure the water was transparent before taking a sip and watching Tyler drink. Once he thought he heard footsteps somewhere close but he clearly was wrong.

Once the sun peeked over the trees, the guys picked up their bags and left the cottage. They locked it under the sun, promising heat. The map was still at the bottom of the bag and they were lost and full with lukewarm water in their veins. Josh was going first, the path dusty and the grass on other side loud with chirping, sounding like a broken record.

‘ _My best friend is a mosaic_ ,’ Tyler sang quietly behind him, ‘ _he’s beautiful and he knows that I’m alive_ ,’ the strings of the ukulele whimpered under his careful fingers. By the time they reached the crossroads, Josh could taste honey at the back of his throat: the sweetness washed away any unpleasantness but it stuck too, making it hard to breath.

‘Let’s continue?’ Josh offered, shifting the bag on his shoulder to a more comfortable position, Tyler’s rucksack slightly lighter in his hand. Tyler nodded.

‘I’m really looking forward to exploring the area with you,’ he said conversationally. Josh smiled, enjoying the idea of a long holiday:

‘I hope there will be much exploring.’


End file.
